Stolen Crown Princess (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 2

“Your Highness, it’s time to rise. Please get up quickly. You must prepare diligently if you’re to attend the breakfast gathering commanded by His Imperial Majesty!”

Paelin’s voice, heralding morning, rang cheerfully through the spacious bedroom.

Though urging Ibelia, Paelin refrained from shaking her awake, knowing she had recently been suffering terribly from insomnia.

With familiar steps, Paelin crossed the bedroom and flung open the tightly shut window.

Cool wind rushed in immediately. The stale, stagnant air shifted in an instant, and Ibelia’s closed eyelids slowly lifted.

Beneath her long lashes, her green eyes showed not the slightest trace of drowsiness. Ibelia let out a faint sigh and rose from her bed.

“Oh my, Your Highness! Did you sleep a bit last night? You always struggle so much, but today you seem to have awakened easily.”

Paelin, who had been preparing wash water for Ibelia, widened her eyes in surprise and hurried straight to her side.

“Hmm, it’s just…”

Ibelia replied in a lifeless voice. She looked far too exhausted to have enjoyed a restful sleep. Paelin’s expression darkened instantly.

“You don’t mean you didn’t sleep a wink?”

Ibelia merely offered a faint, forced smile in reply.

She wanted sleep more than anyone, yet despite every effort, she hadn’t managed even a moment’s rest. Whenever her mind began to drift into drowsiness, Liurian’s voice—deliberately erased from her thoughts—would sharply resurface.

[“You won’t be returning to the battlefield for now. I’ve made sure of that over the past year. Not just the Kingdom of Elia—no one will dare challenge the Valcherophe Empire.”]

She already knew well that the knights led by Liurian had seized the advantage in the war.

What Ibelia couldn’t understand came next.

[“So let’s get along well, Ibelia.”]

Ibelia Caroline and Liurian Petrov were married, but theirs was a union forged purely for political reasons.

It had been decided by Gadro Petrov—the strongest emperor in history—out of concern for his son, who would one day succeed him.

It was no exaggeration to say that under Gadro’s rule, the current Valcherophe Empire was divided into two factions.

The Garnet Dukedom, the Empress’s maternal house, and the Caroline Marquisate, considered the Emperor’s closest allies.

These two factions frequently clashed in their pursuit of absolute power. Yet power never tilted easily to one side.

At their center stood Gadro, who continuously pitted the two factions against each other, exercising imperial authority precisely when needed.

As a result, the Valcherophe Empire became internally a peaceful land where its citizens could live well, and externally a formidable empire no nation on the continent could easily challenge.

Consequently, imperial authority grew ever stronger.

This was only natural.

After all, it was the calculated outcome of Gadro Petrov—the strongest and wisest emperor in history—from the very beginning.

Gadro wished for Liurian to inherit the legacy he had built. Contrary to his hopes, however, Liurian showed no interest whatsoever in politics.

He had lived his entire life as the beloved son of Empress Eustia, devoting himself solely to swordsmanship—the one thing that truly interested him—and boasting of his many romantic conquests.

Gadro genuinely worried about Liurian. It was painfully obvious that if things continued this way, questions about his suitability as the next emperor would soon surface.

And that wasn’t all. The system he had carefully built over more than a decade might collapse in an instant.

An alternative was necessary. Gadro pondered this grave matter for a long time before finally reaching a decision.

[“Marquis Caroline.”] [“Yes, Your Majesty.”] [“I have a serious request to make of you.”] [“Please speak.”] [“Would you grant me your daughter as Crown Princess?”]

Edwik Caroline struggled to maintain his composure at the Emperor’s effortlessly smooth proposal.

He immediately realized the position his daughter would be sent to—beside Liurian Petrov, known throughout the empire as a reckless rogue.

Yet he couldn’t outright refuse the Emperor’s offer—not because he was the Emperor, but because the Emperor’s face radiated an unusual sincerity as he made the request.

That was as far as the story Ibelia had heard from her father, Edwik.

[“The choice is yours, Ibelia. His Majesty gave me the right to choose—he did not force me.”]

After finishing his words, Edwik remained silent for a while, as always wearing only a gentle smile.

That smile clearly conveyed that he would give her all the time she needed.

But Ibelia didn’t hesitate.

[“I’ll do it.”]

Without a moment’s doubt, she gave her answer.

She knew it was a marriage proposal for political purposes. Yet she still wanted it.

Liurian was the special person Ibelia had always held in her heart. From the very first moment she saw him, her breath had quickened and her heart had fluttered for no reason.

That feeling had never faded with time. Thus, Ibelia had no choice but to admit it.

From that very first moment, she had already taken him into her heart.

The instant she realized this truth, the emotions she had barely suppressed swelled uncontrollably, and today, she loved Liurian even more than yesterday. It was at that exact moment she received the proposal through her father.

There was no reason not to accept. Even if it began for political reasons, she believed that if she devoted herself wholeheartedly to supporting him, they would surely become a good couple.

But that belief shattered before long.

[“Oh? So Your Grace has gone so far as to come here yourself. I clearly told you never to seek me out here, no matter what—it’s my private space, after all.”] [“Your Highness…”] [“Well, since we’re already here, why don’t we at least exchange greetings? Lellia, say hello. This is the Crown Princess, Ibelia Caroline. And this is my Lellia Net, whom you’ve surely heard of before.”]

She had rushed immediately to the Crown Prince’s quarters upon hearing that Liurian—whose hair she hadn’t seen a single strand of in days—was suffering from a severe fever.

Yet despite claims of serious illness, his complexion looked perfectly healthy, just as always.

Beside him stood Lellia Net, rumored to be the woman with whom Liurian had truly shared intimacy.

“This simply won’t do.”

Startled from her thoughts by the sudden voice, Ibelia lifted her head.

“We must inform the Marquis and find another remedy for your insomnia.”

Paelin declared firmly, her expression stubborn. Ibelia quickly tried to stop her.

“No, Paelin. There’s no need. If even the Imperial Physician couldn’t find the cause, another doctor won’t be able to either.”

“But you’ve been suffering for over a month now! To say it’s merely temporary while prescribing no medicine at all, even though you can’t sleep at all—it’s just too much!”

Paelin clenched her fists tightly and burst out in frustration, tears even welling in her eyes.

Just that alone made Ibelia feel deeply comforted.

In this cold imperial palace, Paelin was the only friend who truly understood her heart. That was precisely why Ibelia had to stop her even more firmly.

She was a member of the imperial household. If she, of noble status, took an unverified medicine and fell ill, not only Paelin but everyone involved with the medicine would face punishment.

“I’m really fine, Paelin. Last night… last night there was a reason I couldn’t sleep.”

Ibelia forced a bright smile to reassure Paelin, but her hastily made-up excuse only deepened Paelin’s worry.

“A reason? Did something happen last night?”

Paelin stepped closer, her eyes blazing with concern. Ibelia found herself unintentionally flustered.

“Well…”

Liurian’s face from that dawn flashed vividly in her mind once more. At the same time, a heavy tightness filled her chest.

“…His Highness has returned.”

After a brief hesitation, she confessed the truth with a sigh. But Paelin looked utterly bewildered.

Paelin repeated Ibelia’s words several times before finally gazing at her with eyes full of confusion.

“His Highness? You don’t mean… the Crown Prince?”

Ibelia gave a short nod. Immediately, Paelin’s face turned pale.

An unexpected silence followed. After a long pause, Paelin let out a deep sigh.

“Then His Majesty’s command to join him for breakfast must be…”

“Yes, exactly. It must be because of His Highness.”

A bitter smile touched Ibelia’s lips as she answered.

Even though she now held the man she had longed for so deeply, Ibelia hadn’t felt a moment of happiness.

Her husband—who had kept her awake with worry—had returned, yet instead of relief, her chest only felt heavier.

His mere return, nothing more, had completely upended her daily life.

And yet, in the heart of the man who disturbed her so deeply, it seemed there wasn’t even the smallest place reserved for her.

Worse still, his words—“Let’s get along well”—now felt like the opening of a dreadful gate to hell, choking her breath away.

Ibelia let out heavy sigh after heavy sigh. She knew she had to attend the breakfast—it was an imperial command—but her feet already refused to move.

Another sigh began to rise within her.

It was the most uncomfortable morning she’d ever had.

Sunlight poured into the opulent banquet hall. Beneath it, Liurian stood alone, arms crossed, eyes tightly shut.

“…”

His broad shoulders rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Aside from that, not the slightest movement could be seen from him.

His head throbbed. He hadn’t slept a wink all night.

He had returned home after long wandering through dangerous battlefields, yet his heart was more unsettled than ever.

It had started the moment he arrived at the palace and heard the Emperor’s command.